NBA business is picking up for Ole Miss basketball under Chris Beard
Chris Beard is one of the most accomplished head coaches in all of college basketball.
So, of course he’s got a lot of friends in a lot of high places. Not the least of which, the NBA scouting and evaluation community.
Now, his new program, the Ole Miss Rebels, have produced just 17 NBA Draft selections in their 100-plus-year history, including a single first-rounder. Terence Davis (Sacramento Kings) is the only former Rebel on a current NBA roster.
But, then, Ole Miss has also only ever been to the NCAA Tournament nine times … ever. Meanwhile, the Rebels would be the fourth team Beard’s taken dancing since 2016. His Texas Tech Red Raiders made the title game in 2019.
Huh. Well, maybe it should’t really come as a surprise at all that Ole Miss basketball had 18 NBA scouts in attendance for a recent practice.
It’s the Chris Beard Effect.
“Find me an SEC champion that didn’t have an NBA player, a draft pick,” Beard said. “In the Big 12 we studied that, and there was no exception. We average several NBA scouts at every one of our practices this time a year. Those guys give good feedback. We’ve got some good players. We’ve got some players in the running for future drafts.”
Ole Miss senior guard Matthew Murrell has previously been floated as a potential late-first-rounder.
Beard also believes senior Jaemyn Brakefield — a former top prospect and transfer from Duke — has transferable NBA traits.
“He’s got a lot of discipline,” Beard said of Brakefield. Discipline has been a common theme for the Rebels in the preseason. “When Brake gets up in the morning, he knows exactly what he’s got to do. Most days, he gets it done.
“He’s special. The expectations we’ve placed on him are very high. We’re asking him almost for perfection. But, in my opinion, he’s got a chance to play professional basketball. Certainly that’s what pro ball is — you either get the job done or you don’t.”
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Most likely driving the increased next-level interest in the Rebels this season is Beard’s off-season portal haul.
Ole Miss cleaned up with transfers, specifically point guards Austin Nunez (Arizona State) and Jaylen Murray (Saint Peter’s), wings Allen Flanigan (Auburn) and Brandon Murray (LSU/Georgetown) and centers Moussa Cisse (Oklahoma State) and Jamarion Sharp (Western Kentucky).
Ole Miss returns five players off of last year’s roster. The Rebels open the 2023-24 season November 6 against Alabama State. They’ll hold an exhibition on Monday against Tusculum at 7 p.m. CT.
“Basketball people, you’re always interested in their opinion,” Beard said. “I think guys are respecting how hard we’re playing. We look like a unit that plays for each other. We got a lot of positives right now.”
“We’ve got a great coaching staff,” Murray said. Murray and fellow Ole Miss guard TJ Caldwell each met the media this week. The Rebels are nearly a month into preseason practices, and recently played Houston to four points in a scrimmage. The Cougars were one of the four No. 1 seeds in last year’s NCAA Tournament.
Murray continued, “For this to be our first year, the way our coaches got us bonding so quick, it’s played a big part in this team.”
